Study Says Cancelling Online Orders Before Paying Saves American $2,500 A Year

December 2, 2019 By

Online shopping is a billions-a-year industry, but a new study says Americans save lots of of dough every year by “X”ing out of an order before going through with it.

The study, commissioned by the fraud control company Forter, reports Americans back out of an average of 96 online purchases a year for various reasons, for a total of some $2,500 in canceled transactions.

Unfortunately for retailers, it doesn’t take much for shoppers to change their minds. In fact, 51% say they’d back out of a purchase if the online store opened up just one additional pop-up window or tab.

Half of the 2,000 Americans surveyed said extra security measures, like having to enter a special PIN or other code, was a turn off. Half said having to re-enter their credit card info was enough to convince them to pull the plug on a purchase.

Having to re-enter shipping info was a similar no-no: 44% say that would be enough to have them reconsider buying something for themselves or someone else.

In fact, the study found if it takes more than three steps to buy something, people generally won’t do it — particularly if it’s a pricey gift. Eighty-one percent said that they they’d bug out of an expensive purchase if they were annoyed at the interface.

All this frustration leaves an average of $116.07 worth of un-purchased merchandise in various online shopping carts for the average American, while 27% say they even have even more abandoned goods stranded in various shopping carts.